CHICAGO – The No. 12 Loyola University Chicago men's volleyball team put an exclamation mark on its regular season as it downed No. 14 Lewis in straight sets (25-16, 25-18, 25-21) Saturday night inside Gentile Arena. It was an extra special occasion as Loyola celebrated its class of seven graduating seniors, as well as honored the Rae Strong Foundation, prior to the match.

The program will be recognized and honored graduating seniors: Jack Yentz, Justin Ross, Matt Oakley, Colton Brooks, Josh Gottlieb, Jimmy Meinhart, and Dan Mangun.

"Obviously super happy to be sending out our senior class with a victory," said Loyola head coach John Hawks. "We wanted to give ourselves a chance to share the conference title, and we did, but McKendree lost in five at Ball State today. But we have bigger and better things to look forward to. Also, obviously it was a great night for the Rae Strong Foundation, so hopefully Dan's [Lewis' head coach Dan Friend] foundation can raise some money tonight. I thought it was a great crowd - I'm just really happy that we were able to pull out a win and do it in front of them, and hopefully they come back."

How it Happened
JJ Sowa assisted Parker Van Buren for the Ramblers' (18-9, 12-4 MIVA) first kill of the match before Van Buren logged two more kills to give LUC a 3-1 lead over the Flyers (15-14, 8-8 MIVA) early. The Maroon and Gold stretched their lead to five points (9-4) after Nicodemus Meyer and Jake Read combined for a massive block. Later, the 'Blers ballooned their edge to nine points (18-9) thanks to an 8-2 run. The two squads went back-and-forth through the remainder of the set, but Loyola's 16 kills - in the first set alone - propelled them to a 25-16 win.

Loyola Chicago claimed the first three points of the second frame after a Lewis' service error and back-to-back aces via Dan Mangun. Lewis later had the Ramblers within one point (10-9) after its kill and a Loyola error, but the Maroon and Gold widened the gap five points (17-12) after Van Buren's ace capped a 4-0 run. After Lewis responded with two quick points, Loyola ended the set on an 8-4 run to take a 2-0 lead in the match. Mangun and Daniel Fabikovic connected for the final two kills of the set. 

Picking up where they left off, LUC took off on a 6-2 run to begin the third frame. Notably, all six of Loyola points were kills. After Lewis made it a one-point affair after three-straight points, LUC responded with three-straight of their own to take a 9-5 lead. Later, the Flyers did some damage with a 6-1 run, taking a 16-14 advantage over the 'Blers. However, Loyola used a 5-1 run to regain the lead, 19-17. Then, the Ramblers ended the set and match on a 5-2 run to sweep Lewis for the second time this year.

Notes

• Loyola's past five wins have been in straight sets. Loyola has been winners of 10 of its past 11 matches.
• The Ramblers hit .432 through the match – their fifth time hitting north of .400 in the past seven matches.
• Loyola racked up 45 kills in in the win. Lewis had 35.
• Van Buren led all with 21 kills on 40 swings. He hit .475.
• Fabikovic added 11 kills.
• Mangun had a match-high 36 assists.
• Meyer slammed down seven blocks, tying his season-high.
• Sowa had a match-best eight digs.

Up Next
As the No. 2 seed, Loyola Chicago has earned the right to host at least the quarterfinal round of the upcoming MIVA Tournament. The Ramblers will host No. 7 McKendree next Saturday (April 13) inside Gentile Arena with the match streaming live on ESPN+. Match time is TBD - stay tuned to LoyolaRamblers.com for updates.

Founded in 2018, the Rae Strong Foundation supports Preemie Families, inspired by the journey of parents Dan Friend (Lewis Head Coach) and Lorelee Smith, whose daughter Rae Analyn Friend, born at 24 weeks, weighed under 1lb 12oz. They had a NICU stay of 115 days at Loyola Hospital. Click here to donate to the foundation.